The Shadow of Enlightenment

Optical and Political Transparency in France 1789-1848

Theresa Levitt

First book to connect the "optical revolution", long recognized as a crucial moment in the development of physics by historians of science, to mainstream French history.

Incorporates the physical sciences into the debates over representation that have been at the center of the field of French History.

Focusses on the physical act of trying to render the world visible, rather than treating issues of visibility and visuality as abstractions or metaphor.

The Shadow of Enlightenment

Optical and Political Transparency in France 1789-1848

Theresa Levitt

Description

This book is the first to place revolutionary advances in light and optics in the cultural context of France in the first half of the nineteenth century. The narrative follows the work and careers of France's two chief rivals on the subject of light: Arago and Biot. Their disagreement began on the subject of technical optics, but expanded to include politics, religion, agricultural policy, education, dinner companions, housing arrangements, photography, railroads, vital forces, astrology, the Egyptian calendar, and colonial slavery. At the heart of their disagreement was always a question of visibility, and the extent of transparency or obscurity they assigned to the world. Optical transparency formed a crucial condition for Arago's vision of a liberal republic governed by reason. Biot's call for strong forms of authority rested on his claims that the world did not offer itself up for universal agreement so easily.

The Shadow of Enlightenment

Optical and Political Transparency in France 1789-1848

Theresa Levitt

Table of Contents

1. Introduction2. A Revolution in Representation3. Le Rouge et le Vert: The Colors of Opposition in Restoration France4. Astronomy: The Light of the Heavens5. A Vital Matter: Light and Life6. Light Paints Itself: The Conditions of Photographic Representation7. Illuminate All Eyes: Colonial Markets and the Problem of Freedom8. Conclusion

The Shadow of Enlightenment

Optical and Political Transparency in France 1789-1848

Theresa Levitt

Author Information

Dr Theresa LevittAssistant Professor of History University of Mississippi I received a B.S. in physics from M.I.T in 1993, an M.A. in history from Iowa State University in 1996, and then entered the History of Science program at Harvard. My work there was supported by a Fulbright Fellowship, a GSC research grant, the Javier Arango Award in the History of Science, a Frederick Sheldon Traveling Fellowship, and an NSF Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship. I spent 6 months in a pre-doctoral research position at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science before completing my degree in 2002 and beginning my current position as Assistant Professor in the History Department at the University of Mississippi.

The Shadow of Enlightenment

Optical and Political Transparency in France 1789-1848

Theresa Levitt

Reviews and Awards

"I [would] recommend to all readers interested in nineteenth-century France. [Levitt] focuses on two main protagonists, namely, Francois Arago and Jean-Baptiste Biot. Her analysis is broadened far beyond their optical writings. We get a panoramic tour through postrevolutionary France."--Klaus Hentschel, ISIS